


Of Imminence and Senpai

by boats_birds



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Comfort, First Meetings, Fluff, M/M, in which ms Kuroko totes has a crush on hs Kagami
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-16
Updated: 2015-10-16
Packaged: 2018-04-26 16:50:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,677
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5012356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/boats_birds/pseuds/boats_birds
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Kagami first met him, he was crumpled on a basketball court.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Of Imminence and Senpai

**Author's Note:**

> Happy (late) 10/15 day, guys!! I meant to have this done yesterday, but then I had conflictions about it, and then Darki was a terrible (wonderful) influence, so here we are~ This is just a little drabble about middle school Kuroko meeting high school Kagami for the first time, and while I have no idea how the actual timeline would work, I thought the idea was cute!

When Kagami first met him, he was crumpled on a basketball court.

Kagami honestly hadn’t expected to see anyone on the street courts this late. It was usually just him and his thoughts here, after he finally couldn’t take the deafening silence of his apartment and stormed out with a slam of the front door. So it was a shock to see pale blue hair stark against darkness, the outline of shoulders trembling next to the basket.

Kneeling on concrete, head pressed against the goal, and sniffles piercing the quiet of the night, the kid was so _small_ and seemed so fragile, like he was one sob away from falling apart. He probably wasn’t much younger than Kagami, maybe in middle school while Kagami was starting high school, but he just looked so _little_.

In a way, it reminded Kagami of himself, and maybe that was why he stopped in his place. After all, he hadn’t been much better off just a while ago, living here in this new place all by himself, guilt from Tatsuya still churning in his gut, loneliness swirling in his head whenever he wasn’t dribbling a ball. And even though his brain told him to turn around and mind his own business, his legs still carried him onto the court.

“…I no longer know what I should do,” he heard the boy whimper. “What should I do…?”

The words sounded so eerily familiar to the same ones he used to ask himself every night. Seirin was helping to sort him out, helping him to realize that basketball wasn’t hopeless and he could rely on a team. Admittedly—something he’d never tell the captain or coach—he still felt a bit empty, like there was just something missing that should be there, but he’d gained a foothold, had a foundation for what he should do and how he should be.

So while it may have been none of his business, while he had no reason for wanting to stop and console someone, especially someone he didn’t know and _especially_ since he was so terrible with words, he wanted to help this guy find the same.

His mouth was already moving.

“Hey, you okay?”

The boy froze. The silence hung thick between them, awkward and disconcerted. Then he shifted, quickly scrubbing his face with his palms, and muttered, “I’m fine. Please excuse me.”

He got up from the court, and Kagami thought that he would leave, but instead he just stood there. Shoulders hunched and hands clenched, he just stood, as if his feet were anchored to the ground. He wouldn’t turn and face Kagami.

So Kagami did the only natural thing he could think to do, and tossed his basketball to bounce off the boy’s head.

“Ow!” He turned and finally looked at Kagami, his wide blue eyes still watery and his forehead wrinkled with a frown. “Why did you do that?”

Kagami arched a brow. “You really gotta work on your lying.”

The boy said nothing in return, merely rubbed at the back of his head and eyed Kagami. His eyes were blue, so blue that Kagami immediately thought of California, but they were also red and puffy, with a runny nose to match. He looked so lost, like a kitten or something, and Kagami felt the irrational urge to hide him away from the rest of the world.

Instead, he walked over and gathered his ball, propping it on his hip as he turned back to the kid. “Kagami Taiga,” he said. “Do you play?”

The boy blinked at him, his cheeks flushing pink. After a hesitation, like he was waiting for some sort of punchline, he finally answered.

“I’m Kuroko Tetsuya. And…” he paused, fingers twisting in the white jacket of his uniform uncertainly. “I don’t know anymore.”

“That’s bullshit. Either you do or you don’t play,” Kagami scoffed, causing Kuroko to start. Then he (much more gently) tossed the ball to the boy’s—Kuroko’s—chest, where thin fingers fumbled before catching it. “And you look like you play. So how about some one-on-one?”

Kuroko’s eyes went wide, and he was already shaking his head before lowering his gaze toward the ground. “It’s fine. There’s…no way I would win against someone like you.”

“It’s not about winning, idiot.”

Kuroko jolted and peered up at him, like Kagami had just whispered the world’s secrets to him. “What?”

Kagami tilted his head. “It’s not about winning. It’s about playing. Then if you’re ready, it’s about talking.”

Blue eyes stared at him, which was surprisingly unnerving, given that Kuroko barely even reached his chest. But then he looked between Kagami and the ball, spinning it tentatively in his hands and brushing his fingers over its texture. Finally, he bounced it off the ground with a quiet, “Okay.”

He had no idea what had happened to Kuroko Tetsuya, but Kagami did know that it burned in his gut. Those hands obviously loved basketball, given how they cradled the ball, holding it like it was something natural. And the pain in his voice, saying that he wasn’t sure he played and that he couldn’t beat Kagami—that was the voice of someone who loved the sport.

So whatever the hell had caused Kuroko to doubt that, had caused him to doubt his ability to play, was clearly a terrible thing.

It was a casual game, and Kagami would be lying if he said he wasn’t holding back just a little. He probably shouldn’t have, since that was what had caused the bad blood between him and Tatsuya, but Kuroko just…wasn’t very good. He tried his best, that much was obvious, but he was so much slower than Kagami and he couldn’t make any shots without missing by at least two feet.

But deep in those eyes, when they squared off and he _towered_ over Kuroko, dwarfing him with the difference in their build, there was a spark. One wasn’t going to give up, didn’t want to give up no matter the odds.

Kagami grinned.

When Kuroko finally plopped down with heavy breath, holding out his hand and politely asking, “May we please take a break?” Kagami flumped down beside him. He spun the ball on his finger, pushing it when it lost momentum.

“So, do you wanna talk now?”

Kuroko paused, fiddling with his own hands. There was a long, heavy silence, but Kagami waited, somehow knowing that Kuroko was just looking for a place to start.

Finally, “I’m thinking…of quitting.”

Kagami fumbled with the ball, nearly dropping it and snapped to look at him. But Kuroko wouldn’t meet his eye, instead plucking at the leg of his pants.

There was no need for a further explanation of what Kuroko was talking about, and maybe it shouldn’t have been so surprising. Kagami could sense his frustration in the way he played, the doubt in the way he held himself. But then he remembered those eyes that didn’t want to give up, and he reached to flick Kuroko on the forehead.

“Ow!” Kuroko yelped. “Please stop hurting me, Kagami-senpai.”

Kagami ignored his protest. “Listen, if you seriously want to quit then that’s your decision,” he said, sighing through his nose. “But make sure it’s what _you_ want. Don’t lie to yourself. You love basketball, so if you want to keep playing, then you should.”

Kuroko finally peeked up at him with shining blue eyes, and there was so much wonder and amazement in that look, that Kagami had to look the other way, scratching at his cheek. It was weird, having someone look up to him like he was a light in the dark. Yet it left a warm sensation in his chest.

Then it hit him. And his face flushed dark red.

“D-did you just call me senpai?!” he yelled, pointing in Kuroko’s face.

A tilt of light blue hair. “Yes, aren’t you in high school?”

“Well, yeah! But you don’t have to call me that!”

Kuroko stared up at him, then smiled, something slow and quiet in a way that lit up his whole face. A chuckle slipped past his lips, airy and lilting. Kagami’s eyes went wide and he blinked in awe because _shit, he was cute_. “Kagami-senpai, even though you’re very direct, you’re a gentle person.”

“Hey, you barely even know me!”

Kuroko continued, glancing at the basketball in Kagami’s hand before smiling up at him, “I’ll give it more consideration. I don’t want to have any regrets.”

He was ruffling Kuroko’s hair before he even thought about it, meeting that smile with his own grin. They didn’t really know each other, didn’t even know what kanji made their names, but he was still proud. “That’s good. Besides, giving up without a fight is for idiots.”

A hum and Kuroko gently pushed his hand out of that soft hair. Then he stood up, idling by Kagami while his hands pulled at the sleeves of his jacket. “Will…Kagami-senpai be here tomorrow?”

He squinted. “Oi, I thought I said stop it with the senpai. I can be.”

“Then…could we play again?”

‘ _Could I talk to you more?_ ’ was the unspoken question Kagami heard behind it.

Kagami glimpsed at him from his seat on the court, then tossed his ball up in the air, straight at Kuroko. Again, he fumbled for it, but then grabbed it to his chest. He looked between the ball and Kagami, brows furrowing as he held it back towards him.

“Keep it. Bring it back tomorrow so we can play.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. Consider it a promise.”

Another smile that was nearly blinding with how pure it was. “Thank you, Kagami-senpai. It was nice meeting you.”

And with that, Kuroko bowed before walking off the court. Kagami watched him until he disappeared around the corner and out of sight, then his shoulders slouched until he fell over, red eyes tracing what few stars could be seen behind the light pollution.

He sighed. Then grinned. Then laughed.

“Yeah, it was nice meeting you too, Kuroko.”


End file.
